5.08.2010

In 2007 I married the most fantastic woman on the planet. I was also fortunate to have the opportunity to thru-hike the 2175 mile Appalachian Trail from Georgia to Maine. Upon completing the AT a desire to continue pushing my physical and mental limits was ignited, so I decided to train for a marathon. The idea of running 26.2 miles sounded absolutely crazy to me at the time. After completing the marathon I looked for what was next and discovered trail running. I could not get enough of roaming through forests and up and down mountains for hours at a time. In the past year I have run five ultramarathons in the mountains of Southern California. So now what?

Beginning in a couple weeks I will attempt a thru-hike of the 2650 mile long Pacific Crest Trail. The PCT stretches north from the Mexico border through California, Oregon, and Washington state and ends just across the Canadian border in Manning Provincial Park. Along the way the trail passes through six out of seven North America ecozones, 25 national forests, and 7 national parks.

Blog updates and photos will be posted regularly at iamthechan.com to follow the planning and progress of the hike. Please leave comments when you visit. As I have told people, it's about the only company I'll have!